


Return from the dead

by iloveitblue



Series: Prompts [14]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Off Screen Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-20
Updated: 2014-05-20
Packaged: 2018-01-25 20:41:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1661738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveitblue/pseuds/iloveitblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where the ladies take care of them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Return from the dead

No one was more affected by Phil’s death than Clint was.

To say that he was a wreck was not even considered. It wasn’t that he forgot to take care of himself; on the contrary, it was the exact opposite. Clint did nothing but exercise, practice, work, sleep. He’d eat with the other Avengers when he was asked to and he’d put on a smile for the cameras when they were on PR events. But the most noticeable changes were that Clint did his paperwork and on time. He doesn’t use the vents anymore. And he doesn’t prank Tony anymore. 

It’s like the old Clint died along with Phil and this new one is trying too hard to function without its purpose. 

This hasn’t gone unnoticed, mind you. It went as far as the girls thinking they needed to step in. They were only trying to be helpful and cheer Clint up, but it all was for naught.

Pepper tried bringing Clint out for dinners with her on certain nights. Clint would go along but his mood doesn’t change no matter what they talked about. Natasha tried letting Clint play with her favorite gun, but he politely refused the offer saying that it was too kind of her. Jane and Darcy tried introducing Clint to new people but that only lead to Clint having more acquaintances than he knew what to do with, and seriously, not even a one-night stand? May tried sparring with him, but it wasn’t the same Clint who had snark with every hit (plus Clint only pinned May once compared to the usual 3 out of 8 rounds). Maria, on the other hand planned to tell Clint about project T.A.H.I.T.I. just to get the archer back to his feet, but she knew Coulson wouldn’t want to give Clint false hope, so she kept it hidden.

—-

When Phil came back from the dead, reactions varied from joyous squeals to terrified stuttering (Tony). But the reaction everyone was waiting for was Clint’s.

Phil stood in the middle of the circle of people he now considered friends and Clint stood with the others, staring at him - of happiness or of horror, Phil couldn’t tell. Then Clint began walking toward him. He raised a hand as if to cup Phil’s cheek, but instead hovered a few inches away from the older man’s skin. Phil didn’t move, he waited for Clint; just as Clint waited for him to return. When Clint finally touched him, they both released a breath they’d been holding. Clint pulled his hand back as Phil’s face showed confusion. Then Clint slapped him,  _hard_. Phil raised his hand to touch the now sore cheek, even more confused than he was before. Clint surged forward and hugged the man. 

With one hand clipped between his chest and Clint’s, Phil settled for a one-handed return hug. He could hear Clint’s soft hiccups and a tiny murmuring voice from the archer. “Don’t you  _ever_  do that again, you hear me?”

With a nod, Phil raised his free hand to hold the archer’s head in place and kissed it.

Meanwhile, the girls have herded all the others outside. Standing guard by the door were Jane and Darcy. Pepper gave the override code to JARVIS so that Tony couldn’t get anywhere near the room. Natasha and May fended off Thor and Steve who wanted to talk to Phil. Maria had every phone call and emails from SHIELD to Coulson rerouted to her and was distributed to the rest of the Avengers for proper action.

It was the least they could do, after all, for the two boys they loved.

**Author's Note:**

> [Can be found here on tumblr]()


End file.
